Costumes and Misunderstandings
by mryddinwilt
Summary: At a children's birthday party Emma is saved by an unlikely hero; the Captain Hook cosplayer Mary-Margaret hired to play with the kids. A short CS modern AU.


**Authors Note: This was originally two separate posts on Tumblr that I forgot to post here. So I decided to combine both the POV's into one.**

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

"Damn!"

Emma curses and drives her fists into the perfectly manicured and very wet grass. Her ankle throbs, twisted in her tumble down the small hill, and her cheeks flame. She looks around but everyone is back up by the pool enjoying the party. She can hear the laughter of the kids as they engage in yet another of Mary-Margaret's party games. She feels a wave of gratitude that at least she had no witnesses to her embarrassment.

"Are you okay?" The voice calls from above and she twists to see a man in black leather making his way down the wet grass, his long black coat billowing behind him like a cape.

She groans. It is Captain Hook; the drop-dead gorgeous man that Mary-Margaret had hired to dress up as a pirate for Leo's Neverland themed birthday party. She loves Mary-Margaret like a sister but she can't understand the lengths she goes to for her parties. This one included a huge Pixie Hollow tree, a full scale pirate ship, and an elaborate lagoon over the pool. It was like a little slice of Disneyland so Emma guessed it made sense that her friend also hired characters in full costume to play with the kids. There was a cute blonde woman that really did look like Tinkerbell, a man in a Crocodile suit, a sullen teenage Peter Pan, and red-head with a tail putting the "mermaid" in Mermaid Lagoon. Each of them looked and played their parts perfectly.

Then there was Captain Hook. Dressed in all black with leather pants, a billowing shirt that barely covered his chest, and a bright red vest he looked more like the cover of an erotic paperback than a Disney character. She had enjoyed looking him over and giggling with Ruby about his costume but she wished he was anywhere but skidding to a stop next to her.

He kneels down, his eyes full of concern.

"That was quite the tumble, lass!"

She flushes with embarrassment and tries not to look at him, afraid of her reaction to his get-up up close.

Emma sits up and he reaches out a hand to help her. She waves him off.

"I'm fine." He straighten's in surprise and allows her to struggle to her feet alone. Just as she feels like she has regained some of her dignity she puts weight on her ankle and slips again.

"Woah!" he calls and reaches for her. His right hand grasps her elbow while his left arm wraps around her waist keeping her upright. Her hands fly to his shoulders brushing at the exposed chest hair and doing nothing to help her maintain her balance.

"Thank you." She murmurs daring to look up into his eyes. She notices how blue they are and that he has lined them in black. He blinks at her with a stunned expression.

"Uh…it's…uh…you're welcome." She finds comfort in his awkwardness and gives him a small smile that he returns with a blinding grin. After a long beat Emma pushes away from him and is careful to balance on her good foot

"Sorry. I am usually much more graceful."

"No need to apologize, love. Helping a damsel in distress is part of the job." He executes a slight bow and she guffaws.

"You do know you are Captain Hook not Prince Charming."

"Just because I am a pirate doesn't mean I can't assist a beautiful woman." He smirks.

"Right. I'm curious does the damsel rescuing happen before or after the pillaging and plundering?"

"Now that would depend on the woman." He shoots her a wink. She lets out a little laugh; amused and incredibly turned on. Both feelings trigger her entrenched defense mechanisms and she suddenly realizes that though the party is just over the hill they are very much alone and standing much to close. She takes a small step back.

"Well. I should get back to the party. My son…" She trials off waiting for him to back away at the mention of Henry, most men turn and run pretty fast when they find out she is a mom.

"Oh," he glances up the hill "I am sure his father can handle him." He raises an eyebrow and Emma can't contain her smile.

"That was pretty smooth," she admits.

He grins back.

"Henry's dad is out of the picture." She admits and his grin grows wider.

"I am very happy to hear that." She smiles at him blushing furiously. They stand there grinning like fools and Emma knows she needs to get away before he asks her out and she does something stupid like accept. She doesn't have room in her life for pirates especially ones that make her smile like an idiot and her heart do somersaults. She tried that once before, with Neal, and it didn't end well.

"I should go." She steps back again and his smile falters. She turns away but in her need to get away she forgets about her ankle. She starts to fall and then suddenly he is there his arms around her. He slips an arm under her knees and lifts her up.

She gives a cry of alarm and he laughs.

"Don't worry I've carried rum barrels heavier than you!"

She laughs back and forgets to demand he put her down. He begins walking and she lets herself be carried, just this once.

The trek to the tables and chairs isn't far but Emma feels like her entire life is transformed in those few minutes. She feels safe and cared for and her heart squeezes at the sudden rush of emotion. She doesn't know him and trusting him will surely lead to heartache but as he carries her she allows herself to want. She wants to learn his real name, where his accent comes from, and how he ended up at this party dressed like a sexy version of Captain Hook. She leans into his chest and breathes him in and finds she wants to know other things too. How his lips might feel against her own, how the pads of this thumb would rub the back of her hand, how his beard would scratch against her skin. They don't speak but their eyes meet several times and by the time he sets Emma down in a chair she is so full of wanting she is ready to give him a chance.

He looks like he is ready to take it when someone calls.

"Captain Hook!" He turns toward the call and the girl dressed as Tinkerbelle is giving him a pleading look as she drowns in rowdy children. Emma hopes it's disappointment she sees flash across his face.

"Sorry. Duty calls." He waves his hook with a smile and then scratches behind his ear with it.

"Listen I would love to meet up for coffee or a grilled cheese or something."

Emma feels herself nodding before her mind consciously decides to say yes.

He rips off his hook and hands it to her as he digs into his pocket for his phone. She smiles as he pulls it out and begins taping through the screens

"What shall I label you as?" He lifts the phone closer to his face, squinting in the bright sunshine as he prepares to type.

"Emma. Emma Swan," she replies her smile starting to hurt her face as she squints up at him. Something flashes on his hand and she feels the smile freeze. There on his left hand is a simple gold wedding band.

She had gotten involved with a married man once, before she got Henry back, when her self-esteem was so low she had thought any affection was better than none. It was a mistake she wouldn't make again. She always checked for a ring or even signs of a hastily removed ring but his left hand had been hiding in his hook. With a sinking sense of betrayal Emma remembered why wanting things never ended well.

"Okay. What's your number, love?" he says expectantly.

She swallows drily. "I…uh…"

"HOOK! Now!" Tinkerbelle calls frantically and he shoves his phone back in his pocket.

"Don't go anywhere. I'll be right back." He says as he reclaims his hook from her limp hands. He shoots her another wink before turning and rushing to the blonde's aid. Emma watches as he collars kids and hoists them laughing into the air. Emma wonders who his wife is and if he has kids of his own. The thought makes her turn away from the scene, her stomach knotting. Anger and betrayal churn inside of her, far stronger than they should over someone she met only a few minutes ago. She wants to confront him, she also wants to cry. Her ankle throbs dully and she decides to blame it for the few traitorous tears that slip out.

"Emma? Are you alright?" She hadn't seen David approach but hearing his voice brings a swell of relief. She has known David almost as long as she has known Mary-Margaret but she wasn't about to confide in him about the pirate. She wipes at her eyes and gives him a half smile.

"It's nothing. I just fell and twisted my ankle."

"Oh! Are you okay? Can I help with anything?" David is all solicitous concern and it warms her heart to know that there still a few good men in the world. Even if they are all taken. A boom of laughter draws Emma's eyes back to Captain Hook. He is mock sword fighting two little boys and a little girl, while another child is hoisted in his left arm. Her heart twists at the sight. She needs to go, before he comes back and she makes an even bigger idiot of herself.

She turns to David. "Actually do you think M&M would mind if I left early? It's been a long week and now this" she gestures to her ankle.

David gives her a sympathetic nod. "Of course! We can even keep Henry for the rest of the day. I am sure Leo would love someone to try out all his new toys with after the party."

"You really are a Prince Charming." She gives him a grateful smile. He helps her up and to her car and with each fumbling step she tells herself not to look back at Captain Hook.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

"It's a pity Regina is too refined for strippers." Ruby complains as she flops into the booth next to Emma. Emma snorts but doesn't comment. Refined is just the word for Regina's bachelorette party. A classy lounge with soft lighting and free flowing wine and champagne filled with groups of smartly dressed women laughing and talking in booths while soft jazz plays in the background. "I mean even M&M had a hot pirate for Leo's birthday party."

Emma tenses and suddenly becomes very interested in her glass of wine. It has been a few months since Leo's party and Emma's disastrous run in with Captain Hook. She hasn't confided in anyone about what happened. She tries to tell herself that it was no big deal but she has always been a terrible listener. Her subconscious is especially deaf and has insisted on making Captain Hook a staring player in the majority of her dreams.

She is saved from more conversation about pirates and strippers by Regina arriving to ask how they were enjoying themselves. After congratulating the bride-to-be and telling her how lucky she is to have Robin Emma tunes out most of the conversation barely noticing when she is left alone once again.

"You're Emma right? Mary-Margaret's friend?" Emma looks up from her glass at a petite blonde woman that looks vaguely familiar.

"Uh. Yeah."

The blonde nods. "I just wanted to tell you that you are a really shitty person."

"Excuse me?" Emma's eyes widen at the venom in her voice. "You don't even know me!"

"I know enough. I know that Killian really liked you and you shit on him and sent him spiraling back into himself."

Emma holds up a hand. "Hold up. Who is Killian?" Emma is positive she has never met a Killian in her life.

The blonde rolls her eyes. "Captain Hook, at the birthday party."

The pieces slide into place. Captain Hook is named Killian and this must be the girl who played Tinkerbelle. Emma feels a stab of anger over the injustice of the girl's words. If anyone was a shitty person it was the married man that had hit on her.

"Look Tinkerbelle. I barely talked to the guy and I may have some questionable judgment when it comes to guys but I don't date married men. So why don't you take your self-righteous judgement somewhere else?"

The girls scowl deepens. "Killian isn't married."

"Yeah well the ring on his hand says different." Emma spits back.

"Ladies do we have a problem?" Like magic Regina appears between them a warning clear in the rise of her eyebrows. Emma takes a few deep, cleansing, breaths.

"Naw. We're good." Emma mumbles.

"Yeah. I was just leaving." The girl turns and strides across the room. Emma and Regina watch her leave and then Regina fixes her with a look.

"Who the hell is that?" Emma asks.

"That's Tina."

"Wait. The sweet, adorable, ray of sunshine that introduced you to Robin?"

Regina gives an impatient nod. "I have never seen her so upset."

"Yeah well I tend to have that effect on people."

Regina gives a short chuckle and turns to leave; no doubt tending to her other guests.

"Hey." Emma calls her back before she can second guess herself. Regina turns around and Emma feels her mouth dry up suddenly but she needs answers and Tina isn't likely to talk to her again. "Do you know a Killian?"

Regina's eyebrows draw together as she gives a nod. "Of course. He is Robin's friend they went to college together in England."

"And..uh..is he married?" Emma bites her lip trying not to let on how important the answer is to her.

Regina takes a step closer and gives a sad shake of her head. "He was married but his wife died a few years ago. A freak heart attack brought on by bad fertility medication. Killian was a hot-shot lawyer and sued Gold Pharmaceuticals over it. Cost him his job, his house, everything; but he got them in the end. It was quite the scandal. I think that's why Robin wanted him to move here, a fresh start and all that."

Emma nods and looks back into her wine glass.

"Why do you ask? Are you interested in him?"

Emma shakes her head quickly. "No. Just curious."

Regina gives her a piercing look but is called away by a guest and Emma is free to numb herself with the free, quality alcohol for the rest of the night.

-/-/-/-/-/-/

"So uh what are you supposed to be?" The man dressed as a wizard, Emma thinks his name is Walsh, yells into her ear. The noise of the music and people crowded into Ruby's for her annual Halloween party making it hard to hold a conversation. She looks down at her costume. It was a period thing with a thin blouse, long, full skirt and corset that showed off a little more cleavage than she would have liked. The packaging was labeled "Tavern Wench" and it was the only thing left at the costume shop that wasn't basically themed underwear with props. Emma would have preferred to come in a sweater and jeans but Ruby was a stickler for full costumes at her party.

Emma doesn't want to say the word "wench" to a man who is looking more at her breasts than her eyes so she mimes that she is going to get a drink and escapes into the crush of people. Although it's been a month since she got out she is already contemplating how she can make her excuses to leave.

She finds the makeshift bar and throws back two shots so fast she doesn't even taste them but they burn going down and leave her feeling pleasantly buzzed. She looks around searching for someone she knows and avoiding eye contact with the creepier looking guys. Her eyes slide to a corner and she blinks rapidly.

It's Captain Hook or Killian. He is sitting at a full table a bottle of rum beside him as he rolls dice to cheers. He is dressed in the same pirate costume as the birthday party but his hair is more tousled and his black eyeliner heavier. Sexy is perhaps the only word to describe him and even that feels inadequate. She turns around worried he will spot her.

She had Googled him after Regina's party; unable to stop herself from reading all the sordid details about his quest to make Gold Inc pay for the death of his wife. It was inspiring and heartbreaking and she made her fall a little in love with him. She had been too stubborn to try and contact him but now there he was, only a few paces away.

She takes a few deep breaths. Her stomach twists and she feels the wanting bloom inside her. She wants to go talk to him but she also wants to run far away. She wants to apologize but doesn't know how without bringing up his marriage. She wants to make her dreams come to life to feel him, taste him, smell him. She wants to talk to him until she knows everything and to tell him everything in turn. She wants so many things that she is bursting with it.

She hears his laugh through the din of voices and music and turns back to gaze at him. Her wanting suddenly outweighing her fear.

She pushes off the bar and without another thought strides across the room. She stops in front of his table leaning against it with a smile she says the first inane thing that comes to her head.

"What are you boys playing?"

-/-/-/-/-/-/-

The pounding on his door startles Killian from sleep.

"Bloody hell."

Groggily he lifts his head from the leather of his couch, he squints at the sunlight streaming through the windows, and tries to piece together why he isn't in his bed. The pounding continues and echoes through his head. Vaguely he recalls Robin's rather tame bachelor party, the bottle of rum he had consumed and Will helping him through his door. He didn't usually get so drunk but he had needed something to dull the pain of his memories and his own loneliness. But it had only led to thoughts of blonde hair, green eyes, and dimpled smile of a woman he barely knew and would never truly know.

"Killian I know you are in there."

Tina's imperious voice brings him grudgingly to his feet. He knew that tone. Tina was staunchly loyal, mercurial in her moods, quixotic in her ideas of romance, and a force of nature when angry. He braces himself for the impending hurricane and swings the door open.

"She thinks you are married!" She practically shouts as she storms into the apartment.

"What?" Killian closes the door behind her and leans against it, still not fully awake.

"God. You look like shit." Her anger falls away as she looks him over. She shakes her head and spins on her heel heading for the kitchen. He follows and settles himself on a stool his head cradled in his hands as she bangs around starting a pot of coffee. He hears the sound of the refrigerator spitting ice and water into a glass and looks up as she sets it before him.

"Thanks, love." He mutters before downing it in a few long gulps. The water slides clear and cold and wakes him up a little. He sets down the glass and wipes his lips.

"Rough night?" Concern colors her voice.

"Bachelor party," he grunts not meeting her eyes. He hopes she doesn't guess what had led him to drink so heavily. She gives him a long look and then her mood shifts in that lightning way that leaves him reeling even when he is sober and awake. Her hands fly to her hips and her voice returns to anger

"Well I went to Regina's bachelorette party. And ran into Emma Swan."

Killian swallows drily at the name and reaches for his glass before remembering that it is empty.

"Who?" he asks trying to sound confused or indifferent.

"Don't "who" me Killian Jones! " She stamps her foot for emphasis. "Emma Swan! The blonde woman from the birthday party that left you grinning like a fool and then disappeared. The woman that you can't forget and when you get drunk you wax poetic about."

"I do not."

Tina rolls her eyes. "And I quote. 'She made me feel like I was capable of loving again, of finally letting go of Milah.'"

He winces at the words and wonders when he had made that confession. He must have been very drunk to share such a closely guarded secret. It was an uncomfortable and embarrassing truth that he had become so enamored with a woman he hardly knew. He had only spent a few minutes with Emma Swan but they had been the happiest minutes of his life since Milah's death. He wanted more time with her, all the time she would give him. He had thought she wanted that too but then he saw her hobbling away without a glance back and realized that what had been a life altering event for him had meant nothing to her. Despite her clear rejection not a day had passed that he hadn't thought of her.

"It's bad form to repeat words spoken in drunken confidence."

"Bad form?" Tina throws up her hands and reaches across the counter yanking on his left hand. "It's bad form to hit on a woman while still wearing your wedding ring!" She points to his gold band and then shoves his hand away in disgust. "I told her she was a shitty person for leading you on. I was standing up for you! I felt bad because you met her while doing me a favor. Then I find out that you guys barely talked, she didn't even know your name and she thinks you are married. I mean, honestly Killian, the way you talked I thought she was your soul mate or something."

Killian's already unsteady brain staggers under Tina's revelation.

"Married? So she left because she thought I was married?"

"Yeah dumbass. And, actually, that makes me like her."

The coffee pot dings and Tina turns to the cupboard. Killian shakes his head and rubs his temples; the metal of the ring cool against his forehead. Milah had been gone for years there was no reason for him to still be wearing it but removing the ring had felt too much like saying goodbye and he hadn't been ready to let go. He pulls his hand back and twists the ring on his finger. Knowing the ring had been the reason he had missed his chance with Emma makes him see it in a different light. He will always love Milah but Emma Swan, with her bright green eyes and fierce independence, made him realize that it was time to finally say goodbye.

Slowly he begins to work the ring off his finger.

-/-/-/

"Come on Killian. It will be fun." Tina jostles his shoulder as they walk, her eyes wide and pleading. "Ruby always throws the best Halloween parties and now that you are dating again it's a great opportunity to meet someone."

Killian wants to tell her that meeting women isn't a problem for him. He has spent the last month and a half throwing himself into meeting and dating women. He has gone out with dozens of women and while some of them are very nice none of them has relit the spark he felt with Emma.

"I don't have any fancy dress," he protests.

"We call them costumes Killian and I can grab you one from work. That Captain Hook one looks fantastic on you. A little extra eyeliner, show a bit more chest hair she won't be able to resist you."

He ticks up an eyebrow. "She?"

Tina scrunches up her nose. "Uh. Yeah. She. The woman you will whisk off her feet at the party."

Her words calls up the memory of him in that pirate costume carrying Emma across the lawn and the scent of her hair filling his nostrils. He wishes for the hundredth time that he could find her. He had tried Google, Facebook, and Twitter with no luck. He had tried casually asking Regina but had only received a hard stare and a terse answer.

He sighs. "Look Tina I think I'll just sit this one out."

"You can't!" she cries and yanks on his elbow. "You have to come Killian. I promise it will be worth it."

He looks at her eyes and knows this is a battle he will lose. He holds up his hands in surrender

"Fine. You win." She bounces a little in glee. He holds up a finger "But on two conditions."

She nods. "Sure Anything."

"You can't just abandon me when you find some attractive Peter Pan type. I don't know this Ruby person and I won't know anyone at the party. And you are responsible for getting me something to wear. Anything but the pirate get-up I don't want to see that thing ever again."

"Absolutely. I promise."

Tina broke both her promises.

-/-/-/

"What are you boys playing?"

Killian looks up from the dice and his mouth falls open as he tries to process the vision before him. Her hair falls around her shoulders in a golden halo, her eyes are as green as he remembers and her smile just as captivating. She is dressed in some medieval peasant costume with her cleavage and shoulders on full display. He blinks trying to regain some composure as the guy dressed as Pinocchio answers her question.

"It's pirate dice. I can show you how to play." He offers with a welcoming smile and a pat on the bench. Her attention shifts to the other man and Killian curses himself for not speaking first.

"Pirates dice?" She lifts an eyebrow and turns her eyes back on Killian. "Shouldn't a pirate teach me how to play?"

His mouth quirks as he realizes that she had sought him out. He doesn't know if she feels what he feels but fate had seen fit to show him favor and put him in Emma Swan's path; he would be damned if he let her get away again.

"I'd be happy to give you a private lesson, love. If you think you can handle it."

"Oh I think you are the one who can't handle it."

It's a challenge he is happy to accept. His heart speeds up and he feels heat blooming in his body as their eyes lock. He licks his lips and she bites hers and he knows in his gut that the game they are playing does not involve dice.

She moves around the table and slides onto the bench beside him. Her leg presses against his deliberately and a thrill runs up his spine. As the Pinocchio takes his turn, throwing the dice a little too hard in his frustration, Killian leans into Emma. He brings his lips to her ear and whispers the rules of the game. Her breathing speeds up and he can't help but feel as if he has won the first round.

For the next hour they flirt outrageously. She caresses his hook, touches his thigh, teases him about his rum. He boops her nose and pulls out every sailing innuendo he can think of. They sway in and out of each others space and it's easy and exhilarating at the same time. But Killian becomes impatient with the game and their audience; wishing everyone would just leave them alone at the table.

"What do you say we set sail?" He asks pulling out yet another nautical reference and inclining his head to the door. She grasps his hook and stands in answer.

She leads him through the packed house like it's her own and he wonders if she knows Ruby. She pulls him into a darkened room and shuts the door.

He opens his mouth to speak but she grabs his lapels and pulls him into a searing kiss. Their lips slide hot and wet and when his tongue dips into her mouth he can taste the rum they shared. She moans into his mouth and they stumble back into the door with a thud. His hand twines into her silky hair urgently changing the angle. When they break away they are both gasping and her hot breath mingles with his as their lips hover over each other.

"That was," he murmurs.

"Yeah," she replies.

They both grin and pull back a little further.

"I'm sorry I didn't wait for you at the birthday party. But I-" She looks down sheepishly.

"Thought I was married. Yes, Tina told me."

Emma grimaces at Tina's name. "I think she hates me."

"Actually I think she likes you." He pauses and remembers how insistent Tina had been that he attend the party and wear the pirate costume. It was the first time he didn't mind her matchmaking schemes.

Emma shakes her head in disbelieve and he chuckles.

"I am glad she set me straight. I wanted to go out with you but I've been burned by guys before Henry's dad…" She trails off and looks at him in surprise. He wonders what she was about to say and if she feels the same overwhelming need to share her life story that he does. He gives her an encouraging smile and her eyelashes flutter. "I just didn't want to be hurt again," she murmurs.

He raises a hand to her chin and strokes it with his thumb. "I understand. I've my own past."

Emma nods. He aches to tell her more but instead he captures her lips.

This time the kiss is slow and tender, perhaps too tender for a woman he barely knows. When they break away she leans her forehead on his and his hands settle about her waist, his hook long forgotten on the floor.

He thinks that he could die happy in this moment and yet he would be very angry if he couldn't spend a whole lifetime getting to know Emma Swan.


End file.
